Pope Francis offers Purgatory deal for Twitter followers

Looking for a shortcut to salvation? The pope has an offer too good to resist.

Oh that pesky Purgatory, if only there were a way to shorten one’s stay. But wait, there is!

The Sacred Apostolic Penitentiary, the Vatican court that rules on the forgiveness of sins, has an offer. If you can’t make it to Rio de Janeiro for World Youth Day with Pope Francis this month, indulgences (remissions for temporary punishment) may be given to those who follow the event on television, radio and through social media.

But like most marketing promotions, the deal doesn’t come without small print: to get your free indulgences by social media, believers must first confess their sins, offer prayers and attend Mass.

“You can't obtain indulgences like getting a coffee from a vending machine,” Archbishop Claudio Maria Celli, head of the pontifical council for social communication, told the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera.